Long Island construction jobs down 8 percent

Of the 337 metropolitan areas studied, Nassau and Suffolk counties suffered the fifth-largest job loss from May 2011 to May 2012, losing 4,700 jobs.

The worst construction job loss was experienced in the Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, Fla. area, which lost 7,100 jobs, a 14 percent drop. New York City was third on the list, losing 5,100 jobs, a 5 percent decline.

Anchorage, Alaska, only lost 2,700 jobs, but its 28 percent job loss was the highest in the country.

Winners in the job numbers included Bakersfield-Delano, Calif., which added the highest percentage of new construction jobs, up 22 percent (3,000 jobs). The Indianapolis-Carmel, Ind., area gained 8,000 jobs, a 20 percent hike, and Knoxville, Tenn. added 3,100 jobs, a jump of 19 percent.

Association officials said construction employment suffers even as Congress continues to debate the possible replacement for a highway and transit bill that expired over three years ago, and other infrastructure and economic measures languish.

“The number of metro areas losing construction jobs continues to increase compared to earlier this year,” Ken Simonson, the association’s chief economist, said in a statement. “Considering the ongoing cuts to public construction budgets, there just isn’t enough construction activity in many areas to sustain the same employment levels as last year.”